Police in the Turkish city of Izmir have arrested 17 members of
a gang accused of stealing $300,000 (£154,000) from internet bank
accounts.
Law enforcement agencies alleged that the gang worked alongside
three Russian hackers, who provided them with usernames and
passwords stolen using spyware.
It is claimed the Russian hackers shared the password information
of thousands of unsuspecting Turkish internet users in exchange for
10 per cent of the money stolen.
Hundreds of internet users began to complain about unexpected
withdrawals from their online bank accounts in January.
A 20-strong team from the Izmir Organised Crime Bureau investigated
the case, discovered the IP addresses of the computers making the
illegal transactions, and made simultaneous raids at addresses in
Izmir, Fethiye, Didim and Kusadasi.
"In recent years there has been steady growth in the number of
viruses and Trojans written to steal banking information from web
surfers," said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at
Sophos.
"Spyware can silently hide on users' computers waiting for them to
type in their confidential information and then surreptitiously
share it with the hackers."
Cluley applauded the Turkish authorities for looking into the case
so speedily, but warned that phishing and spyware is a global
problem that requires a global clampdown.
"What's more, all computer users need to defend themselves better
against these kind of menaces if they want to continue to bank
online safely," he added.
Names of the three suspected Russian hackers have been shared with
Interpol.